1. Technical Field
In dentistry, root canal supports and fillers are used for repair of teeth. More particularly, a flexible rope-like root canal prosthesis is disclosed for use in connection with restoring the pulp cavity of a tooth and prosthetic dental implants.
2. Background of Related Art
Restoration and repair of damaged teeth and gums is a common occurrence in modern dentistry. Natural teeth are specially adapted to withstand the rugged environment of the mouth and the rigors and intense pressures of chewing. A normal tooth is composed of a crown, neck, root and pulp cavity. A longitudinal cross-section of a tooth shows a central chamber having the general form of the tooth. Processes of the chamber pass from its body, one for each root and down each root and open at the apex by the apical foramen.
Teeth may become damaged due to disease, infection and/or trauma. To prevent further damage and pain, the damaged tooth may be repaired by procedures which include removal of the pulp in the central chamber and root. The root is then cleaned and prepared for receiving the materials and prosthetics that form the basis of a restored tooth. In certain instances, the root canal must be drilled open and bored out to receive such prosthetics. Care must be taken to avoid removing too much material from within the root and weakening the remaining tooth wall. After preparing the canal, the root must be sealed with inert biocompatable fillers to prevent infection and continuing decay. Gutta percha is commonly used as such a filler.
When the natural crown has been damaged and is to be replaced with a prosthetic crown, one or more root canal posts may be placed within the root canal for support. The posts are cemented in the canal and serve as the foundation for the prosthetic crown. Root posts are ordinarily elongated cylindrical solid or cannulated bodies such as those described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,936,776 (castable translucent glass--ceramic or castable phosphate bound apatite containing compositions), U.S. Pat. No. 4,952,150 (sections of precious-metal alloys having differing ductilities or flexural rigidities which are bonded together by soldering, welding or sintering), U.S. Pat. No. 4,778,388 (root canal post of stainless steel, gold, silver, palladium alloys or ceramic having a shank, head and a bore axially through the head and shank), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,490,116 (dental post with self-tapping threading and relatively movable walls).
An ideal root canal post should be strong enough to withstand the rigors of the mouth and conform to the natural root canal chamber as closely as possible to avoid having to shape the canal to such a degree that the walls of the canal are weakened and brittle. Moreover, if the root canal chamber has been damaged or otherwise misshapen the above-described root canal posts would at best only provide minimal conformance to the required shape.